The present invention is a catch basin filter for filtering storm water runoff as the storm water enters the catch basin. The present catch basin filter is designed for curb inlet catch basins having a ramp along the curb front to allow stormwater into the catch basin and which also allows water to enter through a grate covering the catch basin.
Storm water drain filters are installed within a storm water catch basin at the entrance to the catch basin to filter the stormwater runoff prior to it passing through a drain and out an outfall into a lake, pond, or retention area. The drain water which is frequently laden with trash, grass clippings, tree limbs, sand, gravel and other forms of sediment is collected from streets, parking lots, and other areas into a storm drain inlet where it is directed into a storm water drain pipe system. The drain water laden with trash and grass clippings, sand and gravel and frequently oil collected from streets is fed through a grated entrance into the storm water catch basin and then into a lake or retention pond or the like. The retention pond can tolerate a certain amount of grass clippings but cannot tolerate hydrocarbons generated from vehicles used in parking lots or along streets.
Prior art catch basin filter systems can be seen in the Shyh U.S. Pat. No. 5,284,580 for a refuse collecting frame for sewer. The frame is placed beneath a cover of a sewer drainage opening to accumulate refuse and permit easy disposal of the accumulated refuse and has a frame body with a filtering net on each side and a hole in the middle of the filtering net along the bottom of the frame body. The U.S. Pat. No. to Morris et al., 6,106,707, is a curb inlet storm drain system for filtering trash and hydrocarbons. A hopper is filled with a hydrocarbon absorbing material and is held between a bottom plate and an internal basket. The hopper is configured to be suspended in a storm drain adjacent to a curb inlet. The Williamson U.S. Pat. No. 6,287,459 is a drain water treatment system for use in a vertical passageway. The drain water treatment system is positioned within the vertical passageway of a drainage system and utilizes a catch basin for collecting the drain water. First and second filters containing a hydrophobic material are positioned within the filter supporting section for filtering contaminants from the drain water. The catch basin has an overflow permitting drain water to bypass the treatment system when it exceeds the rate of drainwater entering the system. The Sharpless U.S. Pat. No. 6,368,499 is a storm drain assembly with a disposable filter cartridge. The filter cartridge has a pillow structure containing oil absorbing fibers which is placed in a filter cage and is connected to the storm drain grate. The Barella U.S. Pat. No. 5,720,574 is a contaminant absorbing drainage trough that fits in a water drainage inlet and has a perforated bottom portion. The trough holds a replaceable filter medium. The Bamer et al. U.S. Pat. No. 5,820,762 shows a filter insert for a storm drain. The insert is filled with one or more bags of filter medium, such as absorbent celluose for absorbing oils and greases and hydrocarbons.
The present invention is added to a curb inlet catch basin found in some states of the United States which includes a ramp in the curb front which feeds into a catch basin to allow stormwater to run directly along the curb, down the ramp and into the catch basin. This type of catch basin also has a grated cover so that water can enter directly through the grate rather than through the ramped entrance. The present catch basin filter is designed to direct water both from the curb ramp inlet into the catch basin and directly through the grate for the catch basin into a catch basket filtering system prior to being fed into the catch basin and into a drain pipe.